Man O War Small Area Study Report

Transcription

1 Man O War Small Area Study Report Lexington, KY Prepared for: Kentucky Transportation Cabinet and Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government August 2, 2016 URS Corporation 525 Vine Street, Suite 1800 Cincinnati, Ohio Tel: Fax:

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3 MOW Small Area Study Lexington, KY Executive Summary URS, now a wholly owned subsidiary of AECOM Technical Services, was tasked by the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet and Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government to develop short-term and long-term improvement projects for the Man O War Small Area in the vicinity of I-75 on the east side of Lexington, KY. The study area stretches from Sir Barton Way to the west, Polo Club Boulevard to the east, US 60 to the north and Man O War Boulevard to the south. The vicinity map shown in Figure 2 gives a more detailed depiction of the area included in the study limits. In addition to reduction in congestion, the goal was to improve safety and mobility for all modes of transportation in the area and improve route reliability. I-75 is one of the major north-south interstate routes in the country, carrying approximately 70,000 vehicles per day in the project area. Lexington does not have a north-south expressway, so I-75 is also used by local traffic as an expressway for the east side of greater Lexington. The project area is also growing rapidly, adding several new developments in the last few years. The land use in the area is a mix of commercial retail, food service, entertainment, office and residential. This mix of different traffic generators makes the area congested throughout the weekday and on weekends. A wide variety of data was collected including traffic volume data, crash data, traffic signal timing, planned future developments, etc. Traffic queues were measured in several locations and an inventory of pedestrian, bicycle and transit facilities was performed. This data defined the existing situation and indicated which areas suffered the most severe traffic congestion, as well as other areas identified for improvement. Once alternatives were developed, preliminary cost estimates for these alternatives were formulated, and the alternatives were grouped in order of their recommended implementation. Alternatives range from short term, relatively low cost quick fix types to long term, and more costly options. Page i

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5 MOW Small Area Study Lexington, KY Table of Contents Executive Summary... i Introduction... 1 Existing Conditions... 2 Existing Signal Timing... 3 Field Observations... 4 I-75 Southbound between US 60 and MOW... 6 Crash History... 9 GIS Data... 9 Multimodal Issues...10 Pedestrian...10 Transit...11 Bicycle...11 Future Plans...12 Future Traffic...12 Recommended Improvements...13 Transit...13 Bicycle...13 Todds Road Interchange with I Add a Weave Lane on SB I-75 between the US 60 and MOW Interchanges...23 Dual Left from MOW Blvd. onto Pleasant Ridge / Widen Pleasant Ridge Drive...18 Sir Barton Way/Polo Club Boulevard Connector...21 Dual Right-Turn Lane and Traffic Signal at I-75 SB off Ramp to MOW Blvd Dual Left-Turn Lane EB MOW to Polo Club Boulevard...27 Traffic Signal at US 60/Polo Club Blvd. Intersection...28 Construct Sidewalk on South Side, West End of US Additional Through Lane for Westbound and Eastbound US Recommended Project Priorities and Estimated Costs...31 Conclusion...33 First Tier Priorities...33 Second Tier Priorities...33 Third Tier Priorities...33 Page ii

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7 MOW Small Area Study Lexington, KY Fourth Tier Priorities...33 Statement of Limitations...34 Table of Figures Figure 1 - Study Area Sample Traffic... 1 Figure 2 - MOW Small Area... 2 Figure 3 - MOW Blvd. Traffic... 4 Figure 4 - Small Area Study Zoning...10 Figure 5 - Alternate MOW Bike Route...11 Figure 6 - Existing and Proposed Hamburg Area Multi-use Trails...14 Figure 7 - Southeast Lexington Neighborhood Locations...16 Figure 8 - Partial Todds Road Interchange...17 Figure 9 - Full Todds Road Interchange...17 Figure 10 - Weave Lane for I-75 Southbound...24 Figure 11 - Westbound MOW Dual Left onto Pleasant Ridge Drive...19 Figure 12 - Restriping and Widening on Pleasant Ridge Drive...20 Figure 13 - Sir Barton Way/Polo Club Blvd. Connector Plan View...21 Figure 14 - Connector Profile View...22 Figure 15 - Connector Typical Section...22 Figure 16 - Southbound I-75 Off Ramp Dual Right Turn Lanes and Traffic Signal...26 Figure 17 - Additional EB MOW Blvd. Left-turn Lane onto Polo Club Blvd Figure 18 - Traffic Signal at US 60/Polo Club Blvd Figure 19 - West Section US 60 Sidewalk Extension and Additional Lanes...29 Figure 20 - Middle Section US 60 Sidewalk Extension and Additional Lanes...30 Figure 21 - East Section US 60 Sidewalk Extension and Additional Lanes...30 Table of Tables Table 1 - Turning Movement Data Collection Times... 3 Table 2 - Unserved Demand Data... 5 Table 3 - Southbound I-75 off Ramp at MOW Queue... 7 Table 4 - SB I-75 Ramp to MOW Dual RT LOS...25 Table 5 - Estimated Project Costs and Priority Groups...32 Appendices Appendix A: Turning Movement Counts Appendix B: Crash Diagrams Appendix C: Traffic Volume Diagrams Appendix D: Level of Service Appendix E: I-75 Highway Capacity Appendix F: CAP-X Worksheets Appendix G: Cost Estimates Page iii

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9 MOW Small Area Study Lexington, KY Introduction URS Corporation (URS), now a wholly owned subsidiary of AECOM Technical Services, was tasked by the KYTC District Seven (D-7) Office and Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government (LFUCG) to study the small area on the east side of Lexington along I-75 between the US 60 (Winchester Road) and KY 1425 (Man O War (MOW)) interchanges, and the nearby areas around the two interchange crossroads. The URS project team is responsible for the following items: Traffic Data Collection o Intersection Turning Movement Counts o Queue Studies o Crash History o GIS Information Traffic Model Development Various Study Components o Segment Analysis on I-75 southbound between interchanges o Operational Analysis of all intersections using Synchro o Crash Analysis o Multimodal Assessment Identification of Areas for Improvement o Short-term Improvements o Long-term Improvements Figure 1 - Study Area Sample Traffic Page 1

10 MOW Small Area Study Lexington, KY Existing Conditions Figure 2 shows the project area. I-75 is a six lane facility, three lanes in each direction. According to the KYTC, the current Average Daily Traffic (ADT) on the I-75 corridor between the two interchanges is approximately 70,000 vehicles; the ADT on MOW is approximately 38,000 vehicles; the ADT on US 60 is approximately 41,500 vehicles west of I-75, and approximately 9,400 vehicles east of I-75; the ADT on Sir Barton is approximately 17,000 vehicles. Polo Club Blvd. has an ADT of approximately 13,000 vehicles by our estimate. Figure 2 - MOW Small Area Page 2

11 MOW Small Area Study Lexington, KY Below in Table 1 are the intersections included in the study and the data collection times. Turning movement counts are provided in Appendix A. Table 1 - Turning Movement Data Collection Times Intersection US Sir Barton Way* US I-75 SB Ramps* US I-75 NB Ramps* US Polo Club Blvd. MOW Sir Barton Way* MOW I-75 SB Ramps MOW I-75 NB Ramps MOW Polo Club Blvd. *Indicates adaptive control originally Data Collection Times Weekdays: 6:30 AM 9:30 AM 4:00 PM 7:00 PM Saturday: 2:00 PM 8:00 PM Existing Signal Timing The project area is served by two different signal systems, one for the US 60 corridor and one for the MOW corridor. The signal controllers at some of these intersections were running adaptive hardware and software when the study was started, meaning that they continuously distribute the green time equitably for all traffic movements. LFUCG provided URS with timing plans in order to compare proposed improvements. Since our initial field review, the adaptive controllers have been disconnected and are no longer is use. The count and delay data was collected in October of After reviewing the count data provided by the adaptive control software, a decision was made to recount these intersections using the previously recorded Miovision video data. The adaptive signal control software system Insync was turned off on November 9, 2015 on the signals where it had been installed. The signal controllers were put into detector mode, responding to traffic at the local intersections. See Table 1. Six Synchro models were provided by LFUCG and updated with current traffic volumes to obtain the performance data of the existing timing and geometry Weekday AM, Weekday PM, and Saturday peaks for the MOW system, and Weekday AM, Weekday PM, and Saturday peaks for the US 60 system. Page 3

12 MOW Small Area Study Lexington, KY Field Observations The MOW/Sir Barton intersection was identified by both clients at the kick-off meeting as being a primary source of congestion in this area. The unserved demand during the PM peak for both the eastbound MOW left turn movement to Sir Barton in addition to the westbound through MOW movement at this intersection were measured on Thursday Oct. 29, Unserved demand is defined as the number of vehicles that were in a particular queue at the beginning of green phase, but were not served during that same cycle. A traffic count just measures the number of vehicles that were able to get through an intersection during a given time period; it was important to also measure the traffic demand on the intersections. Data was collected until there was no longer unserved demand; this was 7:00 pm for westbound MOW at Sir Barton through and 6:15 pm for the eastbound MOW at Sir Barton left-turn movement. Table 2 shows the unserved demand data. Also see Figure 3. Figure 3 - MOW Blvd. Traffic Page 4

13 MOW Small Area Study Lexington, KY Table 2 - Unserved Demand Data Westbound Man O' War at Sir Barton Through Movement Cycle Number of Unserved Vehicles per Cycle during PM Peak Number 4:00 4:15 4:30 4:45 5:00 5:15 5:30 5:45 6:00 6:15 6:30 6:45 7: N/A N/A N/A 12 9 N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 0 N/A Eastbound Man O' War at Sir Barton Left Turn Movement Cycle Number of Unserved Vehicles per Cycle during PM Peak Number 4:00 4:15 4:30 4:45 5:00 5:15 5:30 5:45 6:00 6: When the traffic signal turned green for the approach being observed, the last vehicle in the queue at that time was noted. Then the queue was observed as it progressed to see if it cleared to the last car noted when the signal first turned green. The number of vehicles that did not clear the intersection for that cycle was recorded. It was important to determine if and when the eastbound MOW left-turn queue encroached on the through lanes. The dual eastbound MOW left-turn lanes into Sir Barton Way are approximately 450 long each. Assuming 23 for each vehicle including vehicle length and headway spacing, approximately 19 vehicles can be stored in each left-turn lane, or 38 vehicles total, before the left-turn lanes overflow into the eastbound MOW through lane. This happens between about 5:40 and 5:45 pm on weekdays. The counts above does not show when the through lane encroachments occur. The measure of total cars queued at a red light is what was counted to determine when the left lanes spilled into the through lanes. URS also collected queue data using Miovision video data collection units. The video from these units were reviewed in the office to determine when and where traffic is not being adequately served. All of these unserved demands were considered when alternatives were formulated. We developed alternatives that would decrease the traffic demand at these locations, and in some cases, increase the capacity. Page 5

14 MOW Small Area Study Lexington, KY I-75 Southbound between US 60 and MOW Safety on mainline I-75 is of paramount concern, therefore a weave analysis was completed for I-75 southbound between the US 60 and MOW interchanges. Mainline southbound I-75 count data for a Thursday in October of 2015 was obtained from a Miovision count. This count data was corroborated by KYTC hourly count data. What was called a weave analysis in the scope actually consisted of 3 separate freeway segment analyses using PM peak data; the on ramp section south of US 60, the full segment between the ramps, and the exit ramp at MOW were each separately analyzed using HCS. Highway Capacity Software (HCS) 2010 was used to determine the current level of Level of Service (LOS). LOS is used to translate performance measures of a facility to a simple A thru F system. I-75 southbound between US 60 and MOW generally operates at a LOS B/C during a typical 2015 weekday PM peak according to HCS The merge analysis from US 60 to southbound I-75 shows the freeway area of influence operates at LOS B. The basic freeway section of I-75 southbound operates at LOS C. The exit ramp from southbound I-75 to MOW Blvd. section also operates at LOS C. However, based on the I-75 southbound queue observations, the freeway LOS is actually a D or worse for short periods. I-75 southbound queue data for Friday and Saturday evenings was also collected in order to have a comprehensive understanding of the I-75 southbound queueing issue. LOS D for a freeway is defined by the Highway Capacity Manual 2010 as turbulence levels in the influence area become intrusive, and virtually all vehicles slow to accommodate merging or diverging maneuvers. Some ramp queues may form... but freeway operations remain stable. The above describes what was observed during the peak period around 5:35 PM on Friday, October 23rd, The mainline of I-75 southbound was affected for several minutes during the very peak of the PM peak hour. When the southbound I-75 off ramp queue to MOW is longer than about 1800 it physically blocks I-75 mainline through lanes. This typically happens on Fridays. Of course, freeway operations are affected before the ramp queue reaches this length, because exiting traffic has to slow on mainline I-75 to safely exit. See Table 3. The University of Kentucky football team played away on this particular weekend. Saturday, October 24 th was the last day of the Keeneland fall meet. Horse races were held at Keeneland from Wednesday, October 21 st to Saturday, October 24 th that week. The Thursday, Friday, and Saturday queues that were observed provided a snapshot of a typical Lexington fall weekend in Page 6

15 MOW Small Area Study Lexington, KY Table 3 - Southbound I-75 off Ramp at MOW Queue Evening Peak Time Number of Vehicles in Queue Average Queue Length in Feet Southbound I-75 Off Ramp at MOW on Friday Evening Peak Time Number of Vehicles in Queue Average Queue Length in Feet Evening Peak Time Number of Vehicles in Queue Average Queue Length in Feet 4: : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : Evening Peak Time Number of Vehicles in Queue Average Queue Length in Feet Southbound I-75 Off Ramp at MOW on Thursday Average Evening Number of Queue Peak Vehicles in Length in Time Queue Feet Evening Peak Time Number of Vehicles in Queue Average Queue Length in Feet 4: : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : Page 7

16 MOW Small Area Study Lexington, KY Evening Peak Time Number of Vehicles in Queue Average Queue Length in Feet SB I-75 Off Ramp at MOW on Saturday Evening Peak Time Number of Vehicles in Queue Average Queue Length in Feet Evening Peak Time Number of Vehicles in Queue Average Queue Length in Feet 2: : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : Page 8

17 MOW Small Area Study Lexington, KY Crash History Crash location information and other details were provided by KYTC. Crash diagrams for each of the project intersections were prepared. Analysis of the crash data did not provide any surprising insights into the needs of the project area. Most of the crash locations and types (almost all rear-ends) are typical of signalized intersections in general. The crash diagrams are provided in Appendix B. The MOW Blvd. corridor within the small area study does have one intersection that has been included by KYTC Central Office Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP) personnel in the upcoming planning study for crash countermeasure implementation: MOW Blvd. at Sir Barton/Pleasant Ridge. Details as to the countermeasures planned were not available at the time of this report. Several other intersections within the project area are included in the HSIP statewide intersection survey. See Appendix B. The data shows that the potential for fatal and serious (KAB type crashes) crash reduction along either the US 60 or MOW corridor is minimal. Some intersections have the potential to reduce all types of crashes; these will be discussed in the Recommended Improvements section as these intersections are addressed. The US 60 corridor west of the I-75 interchange has been re-surfaced, restriped, and the signal heads reconfigured within the last few years. Most of the crashes along this corridor are property-damage only rear-end type. Again, this crash data was considered when future countermeasures were formulated. Alternatives were formulated that decreased traffic demand or increased highway capacity. Both of these countermeasures should reduce the crash frequency, which, in turn, is expected to increase safety. GIS Data GIS data was provided by LFUCG Planning and Zoning Services. This data was used when the improvement alternates and cost estimates were formulated. Property lines and utility information included in the GIS data was useful in estimating right of way and utility costs to give accurate estimates for each alternative. This data was also used to estimate cut and fill volumes for new or widened roadways. Page 9

18 MOW Small Area Study Lexington, KY Multimodal Issues Not everyone who needs transportation owns a private automobile, or has a driver s license. Recent research suggests that the number of driver s licenses, car registrations, and miles driven per capita are falling, especially for the millennial generation and in urban areas. Future transportation projects need to consider transportation modes other than just the privately owned automobile. Walking, cycling and transit are becoming more common choices for a myriad of reasons including cost, heath benefits and environmental impacts. Pedestrian I-75 bisects the study area. While it is an important transportation corridor for the country, it also prevents pedestrians from safely traveling between the west side businesses and the east side residential areas. See Figure 4. Both Polo Club Blvd. and Sir Barton Way have sidewalks on both sides along their entire length between US 60 and MOW Blvd. MOW Blvd. has sidewalks, but they do not extend through the I-75 interchange. US 60 does not have sidewalks. Figure 4 - Small Area Study Zoning According to the 2013 Lexington Comprehensive Study, the purple striped area in Figure 4 is zoned as Economic Development. The brown striped area is Expansion Area Residential 3, the red striped area is Community Center, the green striped area is Conservation, and the red stripes over solid gold is zoned Transition Area. The yellow striped area is Expansion Area Residential 1, and the gold striped area is Expansion Area Residential 2. The mix of zoning results in many different sources and destinations for pedestrians, producing demand for pedestrian facilities. Page 10

19 MOW Small Area Study Lexington, KY The development in the small study area west of I-75 is also a mix of commercial, residential, and office space. Most of the developable area in the small study area west of I-75 has already been built out, but there are opportunities for improving the pedestrian network in this area. Transit A review of Lextran bus schedules and service area maps shows that all parts of the project area are regularly served and are well connected to other bus routes and popular destinations. Bicycle Polo Club Blvd. does have bike lanes on both sides of the road within the project area. It is part of a larger system of bike lanes on all of Polo Club Blvd. About 3/4 miles south of the Polo Club Blvd./MOW intersection on Polo Club Blvd., the Gleneagles Trail crosses Polo Club Blvd. The Gleneagles Trail connects to the Brighton East Rail Trail (BERT). The BERT runs under I-75, and connects to Pleasant Ridge Drive, which is a wide residential street. It is two (2) miles between the MOW /Polo Club Blvd. intersection and the MOW/Sir Barton intersection via the highlighted roads, bike lanes and bike trails. The direct distance between these two intersections is about ¾ of a mile, so about 1.25 miles of adverse travel is involved to get from one end of the project area to the other and avoid riding through the usually congested MOW/I-75 interchange. See the highlighted area in Figure 5. Figure 5 - Alternate MOW Bike Route Because of the high volume of traffic and the lack of bicycle lanes on Sir Barton Way, cycling on this road is more challenging. The Sir Barton Trail is a stand-alone piece of multi-use trail on the north end of the Sir Barton Way corridor that is the genesis of a trail system in this area. Page 11

20 MOW Small Area Study Lexington, KY Future Plans The Senate version of the 2016 Biennial Highway Construction Plan (Six Year Plan) includes two I-75 widening projects in Fayette County and one of them is in our study area: widening I- 75 to eight (8) lanes from the bridge over the BERT north to the Bryan Station Road overpass. This Senate version of the Six Year Plan contains only design funds. This section is also the second section of the recommended widening; the first section is to the north of the study area. Given the absence of programmed right-of-way, utility, and construction funds; the fact that this version of the Six Year Plan has not yet been enacted; and that the I-75 section in our project limits is the second section proposed to be built, it is not expected that the widening will be completed before the end of the study design year of Future Traffic The Scope of Work specified that future (2025) design year traffic would be obtained from the Lexington Area Metropolitan Planning Organization (LAMPO) long-range planning traffic model. Based on the field collected traffic volume data obtained in 2015 and engineering judgement, it was decided that the traffic volumes forecasted by the LAMPO model and adjusted to hourly turning movement counts by the consultant were too low. Therefore, it was decided to apply a simple growth rate of two percent (2%) per year to the 2015 volume data with the exception of Polo Club Blvd. Given a ten (10) year horizon, this resulted in a growth factor of 1.2 for all intersections except those involving Polo Club Blvd. A simple growth rate of ten percent (10%) per year was applied to the 2015 Polo Club Blvd. volume data. A simple growth rate was used as opposed to a compound growth rate. When the historical count data was reviewed, a linear simple growth rate fit the data better than a compound rate. Given a ten (10) year horizon this resulted in a growth factor of 2.0 for Polo Club Blvd. traffic. These growth rates were based on historical growth rates in the area and engineering judgement. Polo Club Blvd. was assigned a higher growth rate due to the potential planned development. See Appendix D. Page 12

21 MOW Small Area Study Lexington, KY Recommended Improvements Several improvement alternatives were formulated to address the traffic congestion. The study area as a whole was considered as well as individual intersections. Two strategies were employed: reduce the demand at individual intersections and increase the supply at individual intersections. Alternatives were created that would encourage traffic to use other less utilized intersections. Other alternatives were created that would increase the capacity of individual intersections. All of the developed alternates can be used individually or combined in various ways to enhance their overall effectiveness. Traffic is forecasted to grow for all intersections within the study area when the current and future developments are considered. The alternatives are described in detail in the following sections. At the end, recommendations and prioritization guidance as well as cost information will be provided. Transit A Hamburg area circulator route for busses may be needed in the future to circulate around the Sir Barton Way - MOW Blvd. - Polo Club Blvd. - US 60 loop as these areas are further developed. A circulator route during peak shopping days and times would reduce traffic congestion, since riders could park at one store and use the bus to access the other shopping areas on the loop. A transit hub/park and ride lot also needs to be considered for the Hamburg area in the future. A transit hub would be the end of an express bus route that would take riders between the Hamburg area to the existing downtown hub, and vice versa. A park and ride lot would use existing parking lots. Most of the parking lots in the Hamburg area have excess parking capacity during the weekday commuter peaks. This would allow commuters on I-75 and I-64 south and east of Lexington to commute or carpool to the park and ride lot, and then take transit to the downtown college campuses and central business district. More bus riders in the small project area would mean fewer drivers on routes that are already congested, increasing capacity. Bicycle The existing Hamburg trail is recommended to be extended across Sir Barton Way to Carducci Street and a new multi-use path constructed to connect to the back entrance of the new high school. It is also recommended that the proposed Tuscany multi-use trail outlined in the LFUCG Bike Plan be completed. This proposed trail is just to the west of Hamburg Place, between it and the Tuscany residential subdivision. The completion of this trail would further enhance bicycle/ pedestrian connectivity within the project area. See Figure 6. Page 13

22 MOW Small Area Study Lexington, KY Proposed Extension of Hamburg Trail to new High School Existing Hamburg Trail Proposed Tuscany Trail Corridor Figure 6 - Existing and Proposed Hamburg Area Multi-use Trails Page 14

23 MOW Small Area Study Lexington, KY Todds Road Interchange with I-75 The first system improvement studied involved adding a full or partial interchange at Todd s Road. This alternative is to the south of the small study area. However, this option was considered because we believe that a significant portion of existing traffic now using the MOW/I-75 interchange is accessing the Andover Hills, Walnut Ridge, Autumn Ridge, Brighton East, and Banbury Hunt neighborhoods. See Figure 7. This belief is based on the high volume of left-turning traffic during the evening peak onto Pleasant Ridge Drive from MOW, the volume of side street traffic on Pleasant Ridge during the morning peak, and conversations with KYTC D7 staff. If at least a partial interchange (southbound off and northbound on) was constructed at Todds Road, this traffic could access these neighborhoods via the proposed interchange. See Figure 8. Partial interchanges can cause confusion for motorists who exit and then cannot re-enter the interstate in the same direction that they were traveling. Therefore, a full interchange option was also considered. See Figure 9. The problems associated with a partial interchange could be avoided with supplemental exit signing, such as LOCAL TRAFFIC ONLY, NO RE-ENTRY ONTO I-75, etc. If funding is an issue, the partial interchange could be built first, and then the full interchange completed later. For the reasons cited above this alternate was assumed to have the following impacts on MOW Blvd. traffic: the new Todds Road interchange would reduce the westbound left turn from MOW Blvd. to Pleasant Ridge by 30% at all times and MOW Blvd. through traffic for the intersections west of I-75 would be reduced by 10%. The analysis provided from the Synchro model shows that this improvement keeps the MOW/Sir Barton Way intersection working at or near 2015 levels of service in the 2025 design year during the AM and PM weekday peaks. The 2025 weekend peak is somewhat worse than existing, but still provides a LOS E and less delay than No Build This improvement is shown in all three peaks in the design year. See Appendix D. Page 15

24 MOW Small Area Study Lexington, KY Figure 7 - Southeast Lexington Neighborhood Locations Page 16

25 MOW Small Area Study Lexington, KY Figure 8 - Partial Todds Road Interchange Figure 9 - Full Todds Road Interchange Page 17

26 MOW Small Area Study Lexington, KY Dual Left from MOW Blvd. onto Pleasant Ridge / Widen Pleasant Ridge Drive More left-turn capacity at the MOW Blvd/Pleasant Ridge intersection can be created by providing an additional left turn lane, and lengthening the existing single left-turn lane. Southbound Pleasant Ridge Drive has to be widened to two (2) lanes to accommodate the dual left-turn. These two southbound lanes are carried on Pleasant Ridge Drive past the existing commercial development to Timber Creek Drive, which is the first residential street intersection on Pleasant Ridge Drive. The southbound curb lane becomes a right-turn only drop lane onto Timber Creek Drive. It is also worth noting that the forecasted 2025 westbound left-turn volume from westbound MOW to southbound Pleasant Ridge is 400 vehicles during the PM peak, which generally is the upper limit of the threshold volume that a dual left-turn lane is considered. The Synchro model shows that this improvement allows this intersection operate at the same LOS in 2025 at it is today during the AM and PM peaks. The 2025 weekend peak is slightly worse; from LOS D to LOS E. See Figures 10 & 11 and Appendix D. A new planning tool for junction design created by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) Office of Operations Research and Development called Capacity Analysis for Planning of Junctions (Cap-X) was also utilized. The existing at-grade intersection design was evaluated against other innovative intersection, interchange, and roundabout designs. Due to the volume of traffic and right-of-way restrictions, we believe the existing intersection design is the most appropriate at this time. See Appendix F. This alternate is mutually exclusive to the Todds Road Interchange / Closing Pleasant Ridge alternate. If the proposed interchange and road closing is done, then this alternate will not be needed. If the interchange is not built, this alternate will be needed. Or, the dual left-turn lane project could be seen as a short-term measure to address traffic issues on MOW until the longer term Todds Road interchange project is built. Providing more left turn storage on MOW for Pleasant Ridge will make it less likely that the end of the left turn queue will intrude on the westbound MOW through lanes, thus potentially reducing rear-end crashes at this location. Page 18

27 MOW Small Area Study Lexington, KY N Figure 10 - Westbound MOW Dual Left onto Pleasant Ridge Drive Page 19

28 MOW Small Area Study Lexington, KY Figure 11 - Restriping and Widening on Pleasant Ridge Drive Page 20

29 MOW Small Area Study Lexington, KY Sir Barton Way/Polo Club Boulevard Connector This alternative constructs a new roadway from Sir Barton Way underneath I-75 to Polo Club Boulevard. The purpose of this alternate is to relieve congestion from the two existing eastwest corridors in the project area. A third east-west connection between the two main conventional north-south corridors will allow traffic to flow between Sir Barton and Polo Club Blvd. without adding to the congestion on US 60 and MOW Blvd. This connector will also allow east-west pedestrian and bicycle traffic to safely cross the I-75 corridor without having to negotiate either of the I-75 interchanges. A prefabricated modular bridge system could be built relatively quickly when compared to a conventional bridge, lessening the maintenance of traffic impact on I-75. See Figures 12, 13 & 14. This connector will become more important over time as the Polo Club Blvd. area develops. It was assumed that ten percent (10%) of the US 60 and MOW Blvd. traffic is diverted to this connector during the weekday PM peak, and 15% during the weekend peak. It was assumed the AM weekday peak was not significantly affected. According to the Synchro model, the LOS at all of the other project intersections improved except for the I-75 northbound off ramp to US 60. This alternate is the only one that improves both of the project corridors. See Appendix D. Figure 12 - Sir Barton Way/Polo Club Blvd. Connector Plan View Page 21

30 MOW Small Area Study Lexington, KY Figure 13 - Connector Profile View Figure 14 - Connector Typical Section Page 22

31 MOW Small Area Study Lexington, KY Add a Weave Lane on SB I-75 between the US 60 and MOW Interchanges Traffic in the design year of 2025 further strains the capacity of southbound I-75 between these two interchanges. The results of the ramp and segment analysis for the ramps and freeway section were discussed earlier. In order to develop solutions, 2025 traffic was also analyzed in HCS in order to determine the impact of adding a weave lane. I-75 southbound between US 60 and MOW is expected to operate at a LOS C/D during a typical 2025 weekday PM peak according to HCS The merge analysis from US 60 to southbound I-75 shows the freeway area of influence operates at LOS C. The basic freeway section of I-75 southbound also operates at LOS C. The exit ramp from southbound I-75 to MOW Blvd. section operates at LOS D. Based on the observations of existing traffic, it can be assumed that the freeway LOS is actually will actually be an E or worse for short periods. Because these two interchanges are so near each other, a weave analysis was performed to determine the desirability of adding a weaving lane between the southbound US 60 on ramp to I-75 and the southbound MOW Blvd. off ramp from I-75. The addition of a weave lane upgrades the operation to a LOS B. See Figure 15. See also Appendix E. The addition of the auxiliary lane also increases safety on I-75 because the southbound off ramp to MOW queue will not be backing onto I-75 as often, due to the additional storage. Page 23

32 MOW Small Area Study Lexington, KY Figure 15 - Weave Lane for I-75 Southbound Page 24

33 MOW Small Area Study Lexington, KY Dual Right-Turn Lane and Traffic Signal at I-75 SB off Ramp to MOW Blvd. The intent of this alternate is to add capacity to the I-75 southbound off ramp to MOW Blvd. by adding another right-turn lane. Because of the dual right-turn move and the volume of traffic at this intersection, a traffic signal is also proposed for this alternate. Left turning traffic off of this ramp will also increase as development on Polo Club Blvd. increases, intensifying the need for a traffic signal. See Figure 16. The Synchro model indicates this alternate is less than desirable during the Weekday PM peak. The high volume of traffic exiting I-75 southbound overwhelms the proposed traffic signal, even with an additional right-turn lane. See Table 4. The dual right-turn lane with traffic signal is not recommended due to the poor LOS in the weekday afternoon on the southbound approach. Although this alternate is not recommended, we want to consider all options. Table 4 - SB I-75 Ramp to MOW Dual RT LOS AM Dual RT from SB I-75 Off to MOW EB NB WB SB Approach Delay (sec/veh)/los 15/B N/A 9/A 2/A Intersection Delay/LOS 10/A PM EB NB WB SB Approach Delay (sec/veh)/los 293/F N/A 7/A 277/F Intersection Delay/LOS 224/F Weekend EB NB WB SB Approach Delay (sec/veh)/los 96/F N/A 5/D 59/E Intersection Delay/LOS 61/E However, if a signal is installed at this intersection to accommodate the southbound I-75 left turns onto MOW and the westbound MOW left turns onto I-75 south, we recommend widening the southbound off ramp to two lanes for its entire length. This would retain the existing uncontrolled right turn onto westbound MOW while allowing left-turning traffic to queue in the new lane. No additional ROW is needed to accomplish this improvement. Overhead signing designating the lane assignment would also lessen potential motorist confusion. This alternate prompted an examination of the entire I-75/MOW interchange configuration. The previously referenced FHWA Cap-X tool was used to check the existing partial cloverleaf design against other grade-separated junction designs. Of particular interest was whether or not a Single Point Urban Interchange (SPUI) would be more efficient. Significant widening in the westbound direction on MOW to add lanes would have to take place to construct the SPUI. Due to the cost of these additional lanes, the existing interchange configuration is the considered the most effective at this time. A SPUI may be a viable option in the future as relative turning movement volumes change, but only with the widening on MOW. See Appendix F. Page 25

34 MOW Small Area Study Lexington, KY Install Traffic Signal Figure 16 - Southbound I-75 Off Ramp Dual Right Turn Lanes and Traffic Signal Page 26

35 MOW Small Area Study Lexington, KY Dual Left-Turn Lane EB MOW to Polo Club Boulevard This alternate adds capacity to the MOW/Polo Club Blvd. intersection by adding another leftturn lane in the eastbound direction. See Figure 17. The Synchro Model shows that this improvement has little effect during the weekday peaks when traffic is lighter, but it has a significant effect on weekend traffic, taking the overall intersection delay from 166 seconds in the future No Build scenario to 104 seconds for this alternate. See Appendix D. This improvement will decrease congestion, which will improve the safety of this intersection by smoothing the traffic flow and decreasing queue lengths. Figure 17 - Additional EB MOW Blvd. Left-turn Lane onto Polo Club Blvd. Page 27

36 MOW Small Area Study Lexington, KY Traffic Signal at US 60/Polo Club Blvd. Intersection A traffic signal will be warranted at the US 60/Polo Club Blvd. intersection within the next ten (10) years based on forecasted traffic and engineering judgement. Also, the existing additional Polo Club Blvd. left-turn lane that is now striped out will have to be put into operation when the traffic signal is installed. A high volume of northbound to westbound left-turns from Polo Club Blvd. onto US 60 will create the need for a traffic signal. See Figure 18. The Synchro model shows an unacceptable LOS if a traffic signal is not installed. See Appendix D. According to the Highway Safety Manual, up to one third (0.33) of right angle crashes can be eliminated at an intersection by changing from stop to signal control. Install Traffic Signal Open Existing Dual LT Lanes Figure 18 - Traffic Signal at US 60/Polo Club Blvd. Page 28

37 MOW Small Area Study Lexington, KY Construct Sidewalk on South Side, West End of US 60 This alternate involves constructing a new sidewalk on the south side of US 60 on the west end of the project area. This is to provide pedestrian connectivity between the new high school and the apartments around the high school to the commercial and residential developments in Hamburg area. This improvement will also help to complete the existing pedestrian network in the study area. See Figures 19, 20, and 21. Figure 19 - West Section US 60 Sidewalk Extension and Additional Lanes Page 29

38 MOW Small Area Study Lexington, KY Figure 20 - Middle Section US 60 Sidewalk Extension and Additional Lanes Figure 21 - East Section US 60 Sidewalk Extension and Additional Lanes Page 30

39 Additional Through Lane for Westbound and Eastbound US 60 MOW Small Area Study Lexington, KY When traveling eastbound on US 60 from downtown Lexington approaching the study area, the three through lanes on US 60 become two through lanes east of Sir Barton Way. When traveling westbound through the project area, there are currently two through lanes. This alternate adds a third lane on US 60 between Sir Barton Way and the I-75 interchange eastbound, and between the I-75 interchange and just west of Patchen Wilkes Drive westbound. This would allow US 60 to have three through lanes in both directions from Industry Road, through the New Circle Road interchange and through the I-75 interchange, a distance of over two miles. The existing underutilized dual left-turn lanes into Elkhorn Road could be reduced to one left-turn lane, thereby simplifying the widening in this area for the two additional through lanes. This also allows the proposed third eastbound lane to become the northbound left-turn lane to I-75 by just doing some re-striping through the interchange. This would change the existing westbound US 60 dual left lanes into Sir Barton Way to a single left turn lane. The forecasted volume for this movement in 2025 during the weekday peak is 290 vehicles, which is less than the 300 vehicle minimum threshold for considering dual left-turn lanes. The forecasted 2025 weekend peak of 360 vehicles is also less than the upper dual leftturn range of 400 vehicles. In other words, we believe a single westbound US 60 left-turn lane into Sir Barton Way will function adequately in the design year of See Figures 19, 20, and 21. According to the Synchro model results, this improvement increases LOS for both the AM and PM peaks on weekdays for the intersections west of I-75, where the additional lanes would be constructed. Changing the dual left into Elkhorn Road into a single left-turn lane does slightly degrade the LOS on this approach, changing it from a D to an E on weekday afternoons. See Appendix D. Recommended Project Priorities and Estimated Costs All of the recommended projects presented in Table 5 provide a benefit to the area in some way. However, the reality of budgetary constraints and other statewide (and citywide) priorities create the need to rank the above formulated projects. A logical procedure was created that considered the estimated project cost, the traffic operational impact of the project, amount of required right-of-way, and safety benefits. While the cheapest projects that do not require ROW may be the easiest and quickest to build, they are not necessarily the places within the small study area that will provide the most return on the investment. During the decision making process we gave the highest weight to the impact the proposed project would have to traffic operations, which is related to safety. Estimated project costs and ROW were then considered at lesser importance. Page 31

40 MOW Small Area Study Lexington, KY The recommended projects sorted into four groups when the criterion outlined above was applied. See Table 5 and Appendix G. The projects are listed in order of recommended priority groups; with green the first priority, yellow second, pink third, and orange fourth. The first project that came out of this process was the I-75 southbound weave lane. Table 5 - Estimated Project Costs and Priority Groups Project Estimated Cost I-75 SB Auxiliary Lane US 60 to Man 'O War $ 1,387,000 US 60 3rd Lane EB $ 928,000 US 60 3rd Lane WB $ 2,235,000 Man 'O War Double Left Turn to Pleasant Ridge $ 488,000 Future Transit Improvements as Needed Lextran Budget Partial I-75 Interchange at Todds Road $ 2,469,000 Sir Barton / Polo Club Connector $ 4,372,000 Man 'O War Double Left Turn to Polo Club Blvd. $ 268,000 Traffic Signal Winchester Road at Polo Club $ 100,000 Sidewalk South Side of US 60 $ 128,000 Tuscany Trail and Hamburg Trail Extension $ 841,000 Full I-75 Interchange at Todds Road $ 5,850,000 Some of the above projects may be built together to save the cost of duplicate mobilization, maintenance of traffic, and to achieve other economies of scale. For example, the US 60 sidewalk would probably be built in conjunction with the eastbound US 60 third through lane construction. The cost estimates shown are a reflection of each project being built as a standalone effort. We considered each project as if it were to be independently constructed in order to provide the most conservative cost estimate information. Page 32

41 MOW Small Area Study Lexington, KY Conclusion First Tier Priorities The I-75 SB Auxiliary Lane does not need additional right-of-way to be built, provides additional storage, and increases capacity. When it is compared to other projects in the small study area, it is more expensive than most, but still is not nearly as expensive as four of the other projects. When all of these factors were considered, this project came out to be the one with the most benefits to costs. The US 60 Eastbound third through lane project is a close second in priority. Since less traffic is impacted when compared to the I-75 option, this was listed as a slightly lower priority. This project also has little, if any, right-of-way impact, provides adequate LOS, and is relatively inexpensive. Second Tier Priorities The westbound US 60 third lane project provides improvements similar to that of the eastbound US 60 lane project, but since it is twice as expensive, it was placed in the second tier group of priorities. Adding the MOW dual left turn lanes to Pleasant Ridge Drive provides some positive impact to the intersection LOS and is relatively inexpensive, but has a minor impact on right-ofway. The transit improvements do not impact right-of-way and have a minor relative cost, but also have a minor impact on LOS. Third Tier Priorities Both the partial interchange at Todds Road and the Sir Barton/Polo Club Blvd. connector projects provide a significant positive impact to LOS, but are expensive to build and have serious right-of-way impacts. The other three third tier projects create little to no positive impact to LOS, but are important for safety and connectivity reasons. Fourth Tier Priorities The Tuscany/Hamburg Trail projects do not positively impact vehicular LOS at all, but are important for improving the pedestrian network. The full Todds Road interchange is also an important project that positively impacts LOS, but has a significant cost and a large right-of-way impact, which put it in the fourth tier of priorities. Page 33

42 MOW Small Area Study Lexington, KY Statement of Limitations URS has prepared this report in accordance with the usual care and thoroughness of the consulting profession for the use of the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet and Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government. It is based on generally accepted practices and standards at the time it was prepared. No other warranty, expressed or implied, is made as to the professional advice included in this Report. It is prepared in accordance with the scope of work and for the purpose outlined in the contract dated September 4, This Report was based on field conditions and observations made in October 2015 and on the conditions encountered at the time of preparation. URS disclaims responsibility for any changes that may have occurred after this time. This Report should be read in full. No responsibility is accepted for use of any part of this report in any other context or for any other purpose or by third parties. This Report does not purport to give legal advice. Legal advice can only be given by qualified legal practitioners. Except as required by law no third party may use or rely on this Report unless otherwise agreed by URS in writing. Where such agreement is provided, URS will provide a letter of reliance to the agreed third party in the form required by URS. To the extent permitted by law, URS expressly disclaims and excludes liability for any loss, damage, cost or expenses suffered by any third party relating to or resulting from the use of, or reliance on, any information contained in this Report. URS does not admit that any action, liability or claim may exist or be available to any third party. Page 34

43 Appendix A: Turning Movement Counts MOW Small Area Study Lexington, KY

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45 AECOM Cincinnati, OH Traffic Department File Name : MOW_@_NB_I-75_ Site Code : NB I-75 Start Date : 10/8/2015 Page No : 1 Groups Printed- Lights - Buses - Trucks MOW WB From East NB I-75 Off Ramp From South MOW EB From West Start Time Thru Bear Right U-Turn App. Total Left Right App. Total Thru Hard Right U-Turn App. Total Int. Total 06: : Total : : : : Total : : : : Total : : Total : : : : Total : : : : Total : :